TORONTO, Ont. — Shell is completely revamping its heavy-duty engine oil (HDEO) portfolio to offer improved protection and performance while at the same time reducing customer confusion by eliminating some of its brands.

Gone are Quaker State, Pennzoil and Rimula brands. In their place is a more complete portfolio of Shell’s more popular Rotella brand. Shell explained the changes to the Canadian trucking press during a recent unveiling in Toronto. The new portfolio boasts several performance and protection improvements and is now dubbed Shell Rotella Energized Protection.

The new portfolio, comprised entirely of CJ-4 products, includes: Rotella T1, a straight grade engine oil available in SAE 30, 40 and 50 grades; Rotella T3 15W-40 which Shell says offers maintenance savings; Rotella T with Triple Protection, which promises a 22% reduction in engine wear over the previous Rimula Super 15W-40; Rotella T5 Synthetic Blend, which is available as a 10W-40 or 10W-30 and offers increased protection and fuel economy over a conventional 15W-40 oil; and the most premium of them all, Shell’s Rotella T6 Full Synthetic SAE 5W-40 which offers the most advanced low-emissions technology for aftertreatment systems as well as fuel and maintenance savings, according to the company.

“The strengthening of Rotella synthetic product offerings, along with moving to strictly CJ-4 products, further reinforces the technological leadership position of Shell Lubricants and will enable Shell Rotella to continue to build on its position as the number one heavy-duty engine oil in terms of market share, brand preference and brand awareness in North America,” said Diane McFarlane, general manager, Shell Canada Products’ Lubricants’ business. “These products are proven on the road, not just in the lab, and are backed by over 40 million miles of punishing on- and off-highway testing.”

All of the products that comprise the new portfolio are compatible with EPA2010-compliant engines and are also completely backwards-compatible for use with current and legacy engines.

Especially noteworthy to fleets and owner/operators may be the fuel-saving potential of the Rotella T5 synthetic blend and the T6 full-synthetic. Dan Arcy, Shell’s OEM technical manager, pointed out fuel savings of 1.5% are possible by moving to the T5 or T6 from a conventional CJ-4 HDEO. That can amount to about $800 per truck each year based on 120,000 miles per year averaging 6 mpg.

Shell’s new trademark “Energized Protection” refers to the extra protection the new portfolio offers against harmful acids, deposits and wear. Company officials said more than 40 million miles of testing went into developing the new product line and the results have been impressive.

In fact, in Cummins’ Maximum Wear Merits test, Arcy explained the newly-formulated Shell Rotella T with Triple Protection achieved the maximum score of 1400 – doubling the passing requirement of 700.

Shell officials spent much of the press conference highlighting the performance improvements of its higher end options. Rotella T with Triple Protection boasts an average of 50% less wear than its CI-4 Plus predecessor in industry-recognized engine tests, we were told. It also boasts up to 38% less iron wear than the soon-to-be discontinued Rotella CI-4 Plus 15W-40 and 22% less iron wear than Rotella T3 15W-40.

Stepping up to the synthetic blend Rotella T5 allows fleets or owner/operators to extend drain intervals and improve fuel mileage. In testing, a fleet of medium-duty trucks performing city and on-highway deliveries achieved 1.6% better fuel economy using Rotella T5 than a conventional 15W-40. Rotella T5 is especially strong in the areas of wear and deposit control as well as piston cleanliness, Arcy explained, and it’s specially designed for use with diesel particulate filters (DPFs).

Shell Rotella T6, a full-synthetic 5W-40 sits at the top of the new portfolio’s food chain, delivering the best overall performance as well as: extended drains; fuel economy; engine cleanliness; wear protection; and high- and low-temperature flow. Compared to Shell’s previous 5W-40 formulation, T6 offers, on average, a 34% improvement in wear. Shell officials also claim Rotella T6 can extend starter and battery life in cold weather.

More information on Shell’s new line will soon be available at www.shell.ca/rotella.